Hiking Mt. Fuji

I am SO proud of all my family members who hiked Mt. Fuji!! It was much harder and longer than anyone had anticipated, but everyone made it to the top, and everyone was glad they did it. the happy hikers, before they started. My brother, Jeff, Dad, and sister Lynne. (Ryan was taking the picture)

Ryan's good friend Matt Walton and his wife Danielle also joined the hiking group. Matt and Danielle live in San Jose (Ryan and Matt worked together) and were travelling around Japan.

Problem: 4 ft. of snow at the top. No one anticipated trudging through this!! Official climbing season is July and August. They hiked the last week of June and thought they'd be okay. I guess the snow hadn't quite finished melting yet.

Ryan made it to the top! Fuji is a volcano. Behind Ryan you can see down into the crater.

Lynne and Jeff at the top. Lynne, why are you wearing my 4th grade ski hat? get a new hat!!

Everyone said the best part was getting to slide down on the snow partway down the mountain. it was 6 hours up and 3.5 hours down.

My Dilemma: Before my family decided they wanted to hike Fuji, Ryan and I had already made hiking plans with our good friends the Jensens. In August, when we all get back from the states, Ginny and Nate will hike Fuji while we watch their kids. Then the next weekend they will do the same for us. But now, after such an awful hike, I'm not sure I can convince Ryan to do it again with me! I have one more month to work on him. He says the medicine you give women to make them forget the pain of childbirth and make them want to have another baby, is what I'll need to give to him to make him hike it again. not promising...

ps--while they were hiking, Uncle Matt stayed home to watch the kids so my mom and I could go to the fabric district!